Yelton Manor Bed and Breakfast pickles are the highlight of our afternoon Beach Break Snacks, 3PM-6PM every day. I make at least 12 different kinds, preserving the ongoing summer harvest of fresh vegetables from early spring asparagus to late season brussel sprouts. I use our many different herbs and spices, and I use fresh dill and other herbs from the garden. I make a tarragon brine, a cumin pickle (very Indian flavor) and a star anise (very Asian flavor). When I discovered this mixed pickling spice I was very intrigued to try the amazing combination of flavors. As it turns out, the clove, cinnamon and allspice overtones give this mixed spice an aroma reminiscent of Christmas, so it’s ideal for the holidays. Now we have also added it to our breakfast buffet just for the heck of it. I tried it with many vegetables, from summer squash to beans, yet plain old pickling cucumbers won the taste test for me. You can experiment with it any way you please. I buy organic spices from Penzies or Amazon.

Mix in a jar:

3 T crushed bay leaf

3 T black peppercorns

3 T whole allspice

3 T coriander seeds

3 T mustard seed

# T juniper berries

1 T whole clove

1 T dill seed

1 cinnamon stick, crushed into small pieces

Place all in the jar and shake to combine. Isn’t it gorgeous??!!! Just the mixed spice alone makes a lovely gift!

Here’s my favorite way to use this spice mix: Obtain small Kirby pickles from your local farmer, freshly picked. Cut the blossom end to keep the pickle crunchy. Leave whole…. or cut into spears or rounds, your choice.

Increase this recipe as you need to, this is for 4 pints. For the brine: 3 cups apple cider vinegar mixed with 3 cups water and 3 T pickling salt, heated to boiling. Put a slice of lemon and a one tablespoon of the mixed spice in the bottom of sterilized jars. Pack in the pickles. Nestle in some garlic cloves too. Slowly pour the brine into each jar, wipe the rims and cover with lids and rings, process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Yum! See the lemon slice in there? You can increase that to two slices if you like the extra zing it brings to the brine.

Mark these for your Christmas holidays, they make great hostess gifts if you are invited to dinner! But eat them any time when you want a very unusual and zesty pickle.

No Cook Refrigerator Oats are a healthy and delicious way to “Grab and Go” into your morning, or take them to work for lunch or a snack. You can make up a batch and they keep well in the fridge for 3-5 days. Use fresh or frozen fruit, your choice. We use small mason jars with the plastic lids available at Amazon.com.

There are many recipes to make these, check online and at Pinterest for recipe varieties. We at YMBB have standardized on this recipe:

Combine ingredients well in a bowl. Use a whisk to be certain that the oatmeal isn’t at all clumped, which will make your yogurt pudding pasty. Then simply layer in jars with organic berries, fruit, chocolate, etc.

Yelton Manor B&B’s daily “Beach Break” snacks always include our best home canned pickles! OH what a happy day when the organic farmers at South Haven’s Farm Market bring in Kirby pickling cukes, fresh with the morning dew still on them, and lovely dill! I am always excited to make these absolutely delicious, crunchy, zesty dill pickles.

This recipe is adapted from a great little preserving book called “Food in Jars” by Marisa Mcclellan. She teaches the secret that to keep these pickles firm and crunchy, not soggy, you must trim the blossom end of the Kirby cucumber. Our pickles are always crunchy now that we know this handy trick!!

Ask anyone who knows me: I eat *continuously*. I graze, nonstop, all day, from waking until (preferably early) dinner. I find that my energy level and blood sugar stay optimally even by eating this way, and I avert suffering the painful urgency of a hunger headache. Some studies say that by the time you experience a stomach growl you are already releasing cortisol and adrenaline and that’s not good. So I just don’t get hungry! Besides a standard breakfast of green smoothie (fruit and greens), a lunch of yogurt and Manor Seed Mix, and a varying healthy dinner, I rely on SNACKS.

The trick is to BE PREPARED.

Keeping fresh fruit at hand, front and center, is key. Our kitchen island is always set with the essentials of a day of fruit grazing. I slice strawberries, or set out raspberries, blueberries or blackberries (preferably from the freezer’s offerings of last summer’s organic local fruit), slice wedges of citrus, sometimes ripe pears or mango, or feature a melon of some kind. Kiwi and apples are always in the fridge. Almond butter and crackers are Robert’s favorite nosh. Hummus is always in the fridge too, for stuffing a pita pocket along with sprouts.

Here’s my other concoction, a trail mix that travels with me everywhere. The base is a wonderful organic gluten free cereal flake called Mesa Sunrise, I like to get the variety with the organic raisins. It’s made from corn, buckwheat, flax, quinoa and amaranth. It is SO delicious! Then I mix in more goodness: goji berries, dried mulberries, golden raisins, dried cherries, dried cranberries, almonds, prunes, dried mango slices, whatever I’m in the mood for. Handfuls or small bowls of this mix are my mainstay.

Sometimes the bulk bins at Whole Foods or other health food stores will have varieties of locally made alternative cereals too. This week I found a chocolate flavored healthy nosh and added it to my mix. Having bars of 80%+ dark chocolate handy is always a healthy snack too. In moderation, of course.

By making all this yummy snack food accessible every day I can rest assured that I am getting my share of the greens, fruits, fibers, protein, and super foods that are so important for optimum health. I carry the Ziplock bag with me on any overnight trips too.

SNACKS! Make them!

PS: Stay hydrated too! I purposefully make sure that I drink 60 oz of water every day. The conventional wisdom is that you can calculate the water you need daily simply by dividing your weight by 2. The resulting number is the amount, in ounces, of water you need every day. I like to spruce up my H2O by treating myself to bubbly, fizzy mineral water (i.e., Pellegrino) for promoting bone density. I add freshly squeezed lime, lemon or grapefruit juice for alkalizing my system. I hydrate, all day, every day.

Here it is, at last, Yelton Manor B&B’s Pumpkin Pear Bread! In the fall we double down on it’s lusciousness by roasting a whole pumpkin for the puree and also using *fresh from the local orchard* pears! But other times of the year we use canned pears and canned unsweetened pumpkin puree. The spices make it marvelous too, so use freshly ground if you can.

This recipe will work in a loaf pan, muffin pan or, as we do, in a bundt pan. Your cooking time will vary depending on your choice.

Whisk together oil and egg in a separate bowl until smooth. Whisk in milk, then pumpkin and vanilla. Stir flour mixture into oil-egg mixture until just combined, do not over mix. Fold the pears in gently.

Spread batter in prepared pan and bake until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Our experience is that a loaf pan takes 45-55 minutes, but a bundt pan only about 40. Muffins will be more like 30 minutes.

And it’s not just for breakfast! This marvelous savory AND sweet quick bread is wonderful as a dinner dessert paired with a tart goat cheese! YUM!

Yelton Manor B&B is dedicated to bringing you the best of South Haven, MI’s farm to table, fresh food goodness! This marvelous, savory jelly is an afternoon delight every summer day on The Manor’s “Beach Break” snack table. We serve with light crackers and some cream cheese.

This jelly does NOT need to be hot. If you leave all the seeds out it will simply have it’s unique, almost sweet, taste. If you prefer some heat, add the seeds of the peppers to your taste.

Use just jalapeno peppers to retain the pale green color, but any hot peppers from the farm market will do. Be sure to core and seed carefully, wearing rubber gloves, and keep your hands away from skin and eyes, ouch!

This is easy and so very delicious. It makes a delightful hostess or holiday gift when put up in small jelly jars.

Jalapeno Jelly

12 large peppers cored and seeded

2 cups cider vinegar, divided

6 cups sugar

2 pouches liquid pectin

Pulse peppers with one cup of cider vinegar in food processer or blender.

Combine peppers, sugar and remaining vinegar in large cooking pot, bring to a boil, stirring constantly until the sugar is melted, about 10 minutes.

Add pectin, return to boil, keep at rolling boil for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat, skim foam if necessary. Process according to instructions with jars, generally a water bath for 10-20 minutes.